I just ran across this today. It's no surprise, but it is interesting that it has been proven in a scientific study. Of course, Karl Rove did his study about how to control the American public through fear long before the Cornell study was done.

ITHACA, N.Y. -- When the federal government issues a terrorist warning, presidential approval ratings jump, a Cornell University sociologist finds. Interestingly, terrorist warnings also boost support for the president on issues that are largely irrelevant to terrorism, such as his handling of the economy.

Robb Willer, assistant director of the Sociology and Small Groups Laboratory at Cornell and a doctoral candidate in sociology who expects his Ph.D. in May 2005, tracked the 26 times that a federal government agency reported an increased threat of terrorist activity in the United States between February 2001 and May 2004. He also tracked the 131 Gallup Polls that were conducted during the same period. He then conducted several time-series and regression analyses on the relationship between government-issued terror warnings and Gallup Poll data on approval ratings of President George W. Bush.

"Results showed that terror warnings increased presidential approval ratings consistently," says Willer. "They also increased support for Bush's handling of the economy. The findings, however, were inconclusive as to how long this halo effect lasts."

When Willer linked the warnings to presidential ratings from 2001 to 2004, he found that each terror warning prompted, on average, a 2.75 point increase in the president's approval rating the following week.

Did ya hear Walter Conkrite recently saying in his humble opinion most Americans are too ignorant to support a Democratic Republic? The Right has jumped on it heavy (Matt Druge went on about it endlessly and Ann Colt-whore had a few kind words too).

Jefferson invisioned that anarchy (his idea of *perfect government was no government at all) was only possible in a VERY well educated society, where information was available and the citizens were intellegent enough to interpret the information in a reasonable way. Interestingly, Americans are pretty dumb, by international standards. Our students fare very poorly on testing compared to other advanced nations. Consider that the average american believes TODAY that Iraq was directly involved in the attack on 9-11 and that a 16K job is a good replacement for a 35K job.

There is no question that the majority of Americans have willingly sacrificed much of their freedom in the name of *security*, even though with the smallest amount of reflection all the new laws will do nothing to make anyone more secure.

Bush and his policies and practices have only made me feel more INSECURE. How about you, Alk...do you feel more secure with W and his cronies at the helm of our nation?

Never mind that Bush is a blithering idiot who has committed impeachable offenses and is surrounded by people who should be behind bars. He was the prez when America was ATTACKED so, to those who still believe Bush is "protecting America," he's the father-figure they turn to when they think the wolf is at the door. They are ruled by fear, and they are willing to give up America in order to feel a bit of fleeting comfort, which is about as real as Bush's "tears" when he hears about another soldier dying in Iraq.

Catherine

_________________

"Behind every great fortune lies a great crime."Honore de Balzac

"Democrats work to help people who need help. That other party, they work for people who don't need help. That's all there is to it."~Harry S. Truman

Bush and his policies and practices have only made me feel more INSECURE. How about you, Alk...do you feel more secure with W and his cronies at the helm of our nation?

Never mind that Bush is a blithering idiot who has committed impeachable offenses and is surrounded by people who should be behind bars. He was the prez when America was ATTACKED so, to those who still believe Bush is "protecting America," he's the father-figure they turn to when they think the wolf is at the door. They are ruled by fear, and they are willing to give up America in order to feel a bit of fleeting comfort, which is about as real as Bush's "tears" when he hears about another soldier dying in Iraq.

Catherine

Nope, Catherine, I feel America has reached a terrible moment of choice, with very few options, most of them, at best, painful. I feel every American would do very well to be sure they can survive on their own, or in very localized communities. My FTP share is full of information on living in the wild and self defence techniques, de-centralized free market economies and self sufficiency.

On the other hand, I see Bush as merely the another road post along the path to the eventual fall of Merchantilism. I didn't like Clinton any better, and I do not see anyone on the Political scene who could get my heartfelt vote, or my faith they could re-build our nation.

I do believe that the Neo-cons are by far the most dangerous politcal party to come along in a good long time. Their ties to Fascism with its elitist *master race* philosophy are very distrubing to me. Sadly, the neo-liberalism that currently control the *conservatives* as well as the *liberals* on the political landscape, as well the utter dispair that seems to have gripped the authentic left in a spasm of self-loathing and inaction do not offer any real alternatives to what I see as the inevitable collapse of our culture.

At the core of this, I believe, is the loss of individualism, and true conservitive ideals such as personal freedoms and free markets. Americans, both right and left, have bought the exact same deal, that a centralized federal government is most able to control the freedoms of widely varying populations. For example, California passes by popular vote the Medical Use of Cannibis and Washington over-rides it. I think that America was founded on the proposition that a group of well organized States could offer people a wide spectrum of cultural environments in which each could find their place and live with *life, liverty, and the pursuit of happiness*. Beginning with Lincoln (and the Republican Party's devotion to the philoosophy of Centralization of power) Amercans have bit by bit been sold a bill of *for the best of all* infringment of freedom that was never intended by the writers of the Constitution. Now, we are so used to it, we dont' even imagine that before Lincoln no one in the politcal intellegencia ever questioned the right of a State to secceed or over ride a repressive federal mandate. Yet, it is true. Until Lincoln, the threat of seccession acted as a hold on federalism, and each State held within itself the power to establish the cultural format of its citizens.

The theory of *voting with the feet* is a powerful one, and offers, IMHO. our salvation. You may perfer to live in California, with its liberal appraoch to social agendas, or to live in Arkansas or Florida where social services are minimal to keep taxation low. You may perfer New York or Michigan of North Dakota. Each state, in a true visiojn of our Founding Father's, should offer to all Americans a widely varied choice on politics.

That Bush (and I would more correctly say *the neo-cons* since I believe Bush is a not very good front man for the real political powers of that group) has brought it to a head may be a simple twist of fate IMHO. It was all going to fail eventaully, and we have been repeatedly warned that the path of Centralization and Merchantilism would eventually lead to a hugely repressive and elitist ruling class, and the demise of our vision of a democratic society based on freedom and liberty.

It is perhaps fitting that we should have to deal with the most extreme of elitist governments before we can truly decide how our country will proceed. I think for many Americans, the Bush administration has served as a wake up call to examine WHAT Amerca is going to be.

There are many hopeful signs that the politcal discussion in America is growing and moving. Right leaning talk shows are being dropped by radio stations acros the country and we are seeing leftist talk shows gorwing in response to this dialogue inherent in our society. The media has begun to see its rightful place as the source of the information needed in a democracy to make good decisions (though it still has far to go). The question for me is who is out there that can capture the division growing in America, and create the New American Century. Pax Americana is failing, obviouslyu and badly, and at this time we are looking at an end much like that faced by the Soviet Union only a short time ago. Can we find the people we need to lead us either through this or, hopefully, around this crisis? I do not see them, and this is where my insecurity lies. If America falls, and if it continues on it's present course I believe it will, the worst kind of anarchy will ensue. While I imagine this will re-invigorate States Rights, and act to de-centralize our democracy, it will only do so with terrible hardship and much blood. I hope and pray the leaders we need are out there now, and will rise to the forefront as our crisis continues to grow.

Bush and his policies and practices have only made me feel more INSECURE. How about you, Alk...do you feel more secure with W and his cronies at the helm of our nation?

Never mind that Bush is a blithering idiot who has committed impeachable offenses and is surrounded by people who should be behind bars. He was the prez when America was ATTACKED so, to those who still believe Bush is "protecting America," he's the father-figure they turn to when they think the wolf is at the door. They are ruled by fear, and they are willing to give up America in order to feel a bit of fleeting comfort, which is about as real as Bush's "tears" when he hears about another soldier dying in Iraq.

Catherine

Do I feel More Secure with bush in power than I did with Clinton? In one word...